Flagship Xbox One launch title Forza Motorsport 5 – which will make extensive use of the console’s cloud capabilities and always-online functionality – will also be playable offline now that Microsoft has changed its policies. However, it will require a one-time connection to Xbox Live before you can play.

In an interview with IGN, Dan Greenawalt, the studio head at Forza developer Turn 10 Studios, clarified how their day-one racing game will work if your Xbox One isn’t connected to Xbox Live.

“So when you first boot up the game, we’re going to ask you to log in,” he explained. “And when you log in you’re going to get the Drivatars and you’re also going to get a whole bunch of content: tracks and cars. Our production schedule is such that we are putting them in as late as possible and that means making them free as downloadable content on Day One.“

We’re not making a launch game. We’re making Forza 5, at launch.

“[But] that is required content to play the game. We basically have designed the game to work with all that content no matter how late is coming in, in order to make the biggest game possible.”

In other words, because games have to be submitted to Microsoft testing, certified, and then pressed onto discs and shipped, Forza 5 has to be done much, much sooner than November. By requiring part of the game as a download on launch day, it gives Turn 10 extra time to finish everything. And so what you get on the disc you buy at the store won’t be the entire game. You’ll need to download the rest of it from Xbox Live (which should be possible to occur as you play, Greenawalt clarified).

After that, Greenawalt said, Forza 5 is like your refrigerator. “You have to fill it up with food the first time,” he explained. “And from then on, you connect whenever you want when you want to update your food. The Drivatars are as fresh as they are. It’s not like they’re going to degrade, but when you’re looking for new stuff – fresh stuff…it’s going to keep evolving. That’s the nature of this Drivatar system.”

When you first boot up the game, we’re going to ask you to log in.

Drivatar is Forza 5’s attempt at next-generation AI in that there is no pre-programmed artificial intelligence. Instead, a ghost version of yourself races on your behalf, using your repeated behavior and tendencies to mimic how you’d race if you were actually playing. Drivatars of random gamers all over the world are what you race against in your single-player campaign.

To that end, Greenawalt told us, “You do have to connect the game in order to get the latest Drivatars, because we need as many people training them as possible. And so rather than having just a launch-day set that was created by us, every day that people race is going to make the Drivatar set that much more accurate, that much more diverse, that much more interesting.

“All of the cloud and online features make the game far, far better,” Greenawalt summed up. “In fact I’d even say revolutionary. The things we’re doing with opponents and Drivatar are not something that anyone can envision unless you’ve played it. But we’re trying to get as much of that into the unconnected, offline mode as well.

Oh dear. Ship unfinished game on the disk and just make people download the rest on day one.

So much for the amazing Xbox SDK, Dev tools which allow developers to make games quickly and easily.

Also love the ridiculous comparisons Microsoft likes to keep making. When I buy a fridge I get the whole fridge, I don't get the main part of the fridge without the doors and and the shelves which I have to get separately.

I don't see an issue here. A lot of games require you to be online to play this gen so this isn't a big deal for me.

Neither do I. People would complain were it not a launch title so I'd rather see them do this than delay its launch for a month or two. Many games these days have day one patches anyways so this is essentially the same thing

I'm not really seeing the problem here. It lets let put a lot more content in than a normal launch day game might have. So you're not getting any less content, you're getting more than you might have done? No reason to complain about that. It was also originally being designed for a console that was requiring a daily internet connection anyway.

And it's easy to hate a metaphor you're misinterpreting. When you buy a fridge, you don't get any food in it anyway But when you do put food in it, you always want it to be fresh food. This metaphor was referring to the fact the food / AI will be constantly be being updated and improved / "fresh".

I'm not really seeing the problem here. It lets let put a lot more content in than a normal launch day game might have. So you're not getting any less content, you're getting more than you might have done?

Read it again, they are shipping an unfinished game that you can't play unless you connect to the internet to download the day one patch, the day one download is REQUIRED stuff that should have been included on the disk, its not extra content.

Read it again, they are shipping an unfinished game that you can't play unless you connect to the internet to download the day one patch, the day one download is REQUIRED stuff that should have been included on the disk, its not extra content.

So? A day one download is required to use the console too. Either way, you better have the internet.

I'm surprised few people have an issue with this. Developers have been getting lazier and lazier using connected consoles as an excuse to push out an unfinished, buggy product.

I remember before the internet when games were actually bug free for the most part and came complete in the package, the only "DLC" addons were full expansion packs as a separate boxed also finished product.

Read it again, they are shipping an unfinished game that you can't play unless you connect to the internet to download the day one patch, the day one download is stuff that should have been included on the disk, its not extra content.

That may be the downside, but the upside is that you are getting the latest content and how it was supposed to be presented by Turn 10, rather than having a rushed and an inferior copy. I'm sorry, but I just don't see what's bad with that. I can understand the connecting internet part where some people may find it a hassle (for those who live outside US, Europe and Japan / Korea) but if someone like me who is from Malaysia yet have access to a 100MB fibre internet connection, then I don't see what the problem is.

I'm surprised few people have an issue with this. Developers have been getting lazier and lazier using connected consoles as an excuse to push out an unfinished, buggy product.

I remember before the internet when games were actually bug free for the most part and came complete in the package, the only "DLC" addons were full expansion packs as a separate boxed also finished product.

The game was designed to be played on an always connected console. Microsoft changed their ###### and now this is how developers have to fix their games. It's not devs fault that MS decided to change things this late into development.

That may be the downside, but the upside is that you are getting the latest content and how it was supposed to be presented by Turn 10, rather than having a rushed and an inferior copy. I'm sorry, but I just don't see what's bad with that. I can understand the connecting internet part where some people may find it a hassle (for those who live outside US, Europe and Japan / Korea) but if someone like me who is from Malaysia yet have access to a 100MB fibre internet connection, then I don't see what the problem is.

Scirwode

It's not the latest content though, it is content they don't have time to put on the disk and it's content that you actually need before you can even play the game.

I live in Europe and have 2Mb connection. If this is a hefty patch and I go out to the shop and buy the game I can't actually play it until the download is all but finished, I don't have the connection speed to play while I download.

The game was designed to be played on an always connected console. Microsoft changed their **** and now this is how developers have to fix their games. It's not devs fault that MS decided to change things this late into development.

I'm surprised few people have an issue with this. Developers have been getting lazier and lazier using connected consoles as an excuse to push out an unfinished, buggy product.

I remember before the internet when games were actually bug free for the most part and came complete in the package, the only "DLC" addons were full expansion packs as a separate boxed also finished product.

When I was in the Falklands I bought Skyrim on PC-DVD and got it shipped out to me to play. After putting the disk in, I was required to go online. (It costs £10 for an hour and 40 minutes of interner) to register my key. And then the game simply began downloading from Steam. The entire Game. I had to google how to physically install the game that was actually on the Disk. It took a complicated work around that failed 14 times in a row. People are used to this.

I live in Europe and have 2Mb connection. If this is a hefty patch and I go out to the shop and buy the game I can't actually play it until the download is all but finished, I don't have the connection speed to play while I download.

I wasn't going to get one until they changed their mind about always on DRM..

When I was in the Falklands I bought Skyrim on PC-DVD and got it shipped out to me to play. After putting the disk in, I was required to go online. (It costs £10 for an hour and 40 minutes of interner) to register my key. And then the game simply began downloading from Steam. The entire Game. I had to google how to physically install the game that was actually on the Disk. It took a complicated work around that failed 14 times in a row. People are used to this.

This is getting off topic and I'm tired of having to justify myself to "people" on a forum.

I switched between original Xbox and PS2 a few times since they launched then I got 360 at launch and kept it till 2011 when I got a PS3, I have used Xbox more than I have used Sony products in my life.

Next gen Sony is doing everything right and Microsoft is doing everything wrong which is why I am highly critical, borderline over the top, against them. I wasn't going to get an X1 until they did the 180 on DRM.

Just because I am highly negative doesn't mean I don't want to play Forza, etc..